Abdellatif Laâbi’s “In Praise of Defeat”

Archipelago books — maybe right now the finest US press truly turned toward & tuned in to the world beyond these Benighted States — has just released a gorgeous 800-page bilingual tome of the Moroccan poet Abdellatif Laâbi’s Selected Poems under the title In Praise of Defeat. The choice of poems is the author’s own, and the excellent translations from the French are by Donald Nicholson-Smith. Rather than “review” & laud … Read more Abdellatif Laâbi’s “In Praise of Defeat”

The First Abdellatif Laâbi Collection of 2016 Out Now

via Arab Lit (in English) BY MLYNXQUALEY on JULY 25, 2016 • ( 0 ) There are two volumes of poetry by Prix Goncourt winner Abdellatif Laâbi out in fresh English translations this year: The first, Beyond the Barbed Wire, is out from Carcanet this month. The second is In Praise of Defeat, translated by Donald Nicholson-Smith, published by Archipelago, set for release in November [Permit me to add that this volume has a preface … Read more The First Abdellatif Laâbi Collection of 2016 Out Now

Abdellatif Laâbi Wins 2009 Goncourt Poetry Prize

In early December, the yearly “Prix Goncourt” for poetry given by the members of the Goncourt Academy to a francophone poet was awarded to the Moroccan poet Abdellatif Laâbi — which is excellent news, as Laâbi is no doubt the major francophone Moroccan poet at work today.  Check out his site here, and the site of Souffles, the major Maghrebian  literary, cultural & political avant-garde magazine of the late … Read more Abdellatif Laâbi Wins 2009 Goncourt Poetry Prize